Student Research Opportunities

Maryland Center for Undergraduate Research

The Maryland Center for Undergraduate Research (MCUR) promotes and facilitates research experiences for undergraduates. Students can use MCUR to find research opportunities that best match their skills. MCUR can help students find mentors, enabling them to develop meaningful professional relationships in their field of interest. Faculty members can use MCUR to find top undergraduate students to assist them with their research projects.

Honors Citation

The Honors College Living-Learning Program Citations is an academic distinction and formal acknowledgement of participation in one of Maryland’s Honors College Living-Learning Programs. Students who earn an Honors College Citation wear special cords with their academic regalia at commencement and the Citation is noted on their academic transcripts. The specific requirements for the Honors College Citations vary from program to program but typically require that a student successfully complete all of the course requirements for the program and have a cumulative GPA of at least 3.2.

Honors Seminars

Subtitle

Honors Seminars engage students with:

Interdisciplinary topics

Outstanding students

Terrific instructors

no more than 20 students in the class

You bring your ideas, your passion, and your interests to the courses you decide to take. We make sure you are given complex problems to think about, significant writing assignments with meaningful feedback, chances to practice presentation skills in formal settings, and a network of friends from every major in every college.

Departmental Honors Programs

Departmental Honors programs usually involve working closely with a faculty mentor on an independent research project lasting at least 3 semesters and culminating in an honors thesis. Departmental Honors research is a powerful way for a student to experience the thrill of innovative research and discovery in his/her field of interest. In a few Colleges, such as Business, students may choose a thesis option, but there is also a non-thesis option involving upper level coursework and enriching experiences appropriate to the discipline.

Admission to Departmental Honors programs varies by College / Department, but there is typically a minimum GPA requirement, upper level course requirements, and an in-depth research / scholarly endeavor culminating with a thesis [check specific details of individual programs through the web links and contact information below]. Students may do Departmental Honors in addition to any of the Honors College Living-Learning programs. Some Departmental Honors programs are open to first year students, although most students begin Departmental Honors at the end of their second or beginning of their third year on campus. Again, check individual programs for options; be aware that some (such as Business) have firm application dates.

Honors (HONR) Seminars & H-Versions

All Honors College students, including departmental/college honors students have access to Honors (HONR) seminars offered by the University Honors Program
and H-version courses offered by academic departments across campus. If you are a departmental/college honors student who is blocked from registering for an honors course you wish to take, please contact Assistant Director of the Honors College, Dean Hebert, for assistance.

Ice Cream

All Honors College students are welcome to participate in Honors College events, including our famous ice cream socials! Please watch the Honors College Event Calendar (http://www.honors.umd.edu/events.php) and the Honors College listserv for upcoming events.

Honors Research Grants

Departmental/College honors program students may apply for a one-time, need-based Honors Research Grant of $500 to help support research for an individual senior thesis or travel to a professional conference related to the thesis. Selection of recipients is based on academic merit, quality of supporting materials, and financial need. More information about the Honors Research Grants is available at http://www.honors.umd.edu/research_grant.php.

Honors Option Courses

If a student in a Department or College Honors Program is not able to take a departmental honors course that is required to meet your honors degree requirements, that student may develop an “Honors Option Course” with the permission of his/her Honors program advisor and the Honors College. An Honors Option student enrolls in a non-Honors course and creates an honors-quality addendum to the syllabus. More information about the Honors Option Courses can be found at http://www.honors.umd.edu/honors_option.php.

Academic Policies

Honors College Statement on Academic Integrity

The Honors College is an intellectual community that engages high-achieving undergraduates to pursue knowledge in an atmosphere of honesty and trust. We support the University’s commitment to academic honesty and responsibility. Students found responsible for a violation of the Code of Academic Integrity by the Student Honor Council, receiving an “XF” or worse, will be removed from the Honors College, including the living and learning program. For more information on the University’s Code of Academic Integrity, please visit the Office of Student Conduct.

Honors College GPA and Academic Requirements

The minimum GPA for students to remain in good standing in the Honors College is a 3.0 cumulative. Students who fall below a 3.0 GPA minimum will receive communication from the Honors College executive director alerting them to their probationary status in the Honors College. The 3.0 GPA minimum is a consistent standard across the College; no LLP may set a lower or higher minimum GPA for its students. Students falling below a 3.0 are considered to be on Honors College probation until the GPA is raised back to a 3.0.

A minimum 3.2 GPA is required to earn the Honors College citation.

It is important to note that individual programs have at least the minimum expectations above but may also maintain additional program-specific expectations. Students are encouraged to consult with their LLPs to ensure full knowledge of academic standards and expectations.

Students will be required to meet with the appropriate representative of the LLP staff if their GPAs fall below the 3.0 minimum.

Denied Access to Honors Courses

Students who fall below a 3.0 and are therefore on HC probation will be denied registration access to Honors seminars and LLP courses until the GPA is at a 3.0. It is possible for a LLP to grant registration overrides for a respective LLP course on a case-by-case basis, allowing the student to remain on track with sequenced course requirements.

*University Honors program requires a 3.0 GPA minimum for access to UH seminars and has the right to administratively remove students who are registered for these courses who do not meet this requirement. Students will be notified with sufficient time to alter their schedules in order to maintain financial aid or other services that are credit-laden. After such date, students will be removed from the Honors seminar.

Removal of Students from LLPs

In addition to the Honors College policy, an LLP may have further expectations for their students. For example, an LLP may stipulate no grades below a “C” in LLP course work or the successful completion of an internship requirement.

Students who have a minimum cumulative 3.0 GPA but are removed from their LLP due to failure to maintain academic expectations may be allowed to continue their Honors College experience in the University Honors program, after appropriate review.

Honors College Repeat Policy

The Honors College Policy applies to all courses across the Honors College living and learning programs (LLP). An LLP director may grant an exception allowing a course to be repeated within the respective LLP in rare, extenuating circumstances after consultation with the Honors College executive director.

University Honors seminars, which are open to all Honors College students, are not repeatable. These courses are seat limited, one-time offerings or offered for a limited time and therefore are often not available for re-enrollment.
Other LLP courses are regularly offered, however are cohort-specific and are not designed for reenrollment as they are sequential, building on previous courses. In rare circumstances, a student may be allowed to repeat a course with the next cohort. In this case, the University Repeat Policy regarding how both final grades will be calculated in to the GPA will prevail. There are guidelines regarding GPA calculations based upon when the original course was taken and within how many credits. Students are advised to consult the undergraduate catalog for their matriculation year or meet with an academic advisor for more information. Course catalogs can be accessed on-line via the Office of the Registrar and clicking on Catalog-Undergraduate.

Internal LLP Transfer and Removal Policy

Student LLP Withdrawal

Honors students, who have matriculated to the University and wish to switch out of their LLP are discouraged from doing so until the end of their first semester unless there are extenuating circumstances. Generally, the Honors College policy requires students to meet with their Program’s director or associate director for advising and consultation and to wait until the end of the fall semester.

If the student still wishes to switch at the end of the fall semester, they may do so by completing the exit survey provided by their LLP representative.

Generally, students may only switch into the University Honors (UH) program.* It should also be noted that while most students in good academic standing (GPA 3.0 or above) will be allowed to move into UH, students with below a 3.0 cumulative GPA may be placed on Honors College probation and not be allowed transfer to UH until the 3.0 cumulative is achieved. Additionally, student conduct/behavioral or other concerns may prevent approval of transfer to UH.
*A small, select group of students may switch to ILS when invited.

Program Removal of a Student

It is the position of the Associate Provost and Dean for Undergraduate Studies that the Honors College and the Living and Learning Programs (LLP) within are additional campus resources affording a subset of eligible students an enriching academic experience. Students entitled to the Honors College resources are those whose competitive academic records are deemed so by the Honors College staff and who continue to prove themselves responsible to both academic and community expectations. Students who either fall below the stated GPA minimum (3.0) and other LLP academic expectations or who are found responsible for academic dishonesty and receive an XF or worse by the Office of Student Conduct may be removed from the Honors College and/or their assigned LLP. Additionally, any student who is considered a disruptive and/or unproductive member of the community, regardless of their academic record, may be removed from the Honors College and/or their assigned LLP. Either action can impact a student’s ability to earn the Honors College citation or graduation cords.

Honors Research Grant

Application Deadlines

Fall: October 1 Spring: February 26

A limited number of grants of up to $500.00 (each) are available to Honors students each semester. Selection is based on academic merit, quality of supporting materials, and financial need.

Background and Rationale

The Honors Research Grant Program has been established to support the research efforts of students in the departmental and college Honors programs. Students may apply for grants up to $500.00 for any legitimate purpose that would enhance their research efforts. For example, grant money could be used toward travel to conferences or special research collections or for the purchase of equipment unique to the student’s project not covered by a mentor’s grant. Generally, grant money is not awarded for the purchase of common laboratory equipment. A student may receive the award once.

Eligibility

1. Students must be admitted to a college or departmental Honors program.

2. Students must be actively engaged in a research project that will lead to the writing of an individual Honors thesis.

3. Students must have a FAFSA on file for the current academic year that demonstrates financial need. If a student’s expected family contribution for college expenses is less than the total cost of attendance, there is an excellent chance the student will meet the financial need criteria. A student may inquire about his/her financial eligibility prior to applying by emailing sfa-scholarships@umd.edu.

*Students who are awarded the Honors College Research Grant must agree to submit a final copy of their thesis to the Honors College and to have their name, thesis title, and abstract posted on the Awards website.